How to pronounce “cancer”
Say “cancer” in 2 beats
cancer
/ˈkænsɚ/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /kansə/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- cankænstress
- cersɚ
- IPA (American)
- /ˈkænsɚ/
- IPA (British)
- /kansə/
- Respelling
- KAN-suh
- Syllables
- 2 — CAN-cer
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: CAN-cer. “can” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/ˈkænsɚ/
/kansə/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “cancer” means
- noun
any malignant growth or tumor caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division; it may spread to other parts of the body through the lymphatic system or the blood stream
- noun
(astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Cancer
- noun
a small zodiacal constellation in the northern hemisphere; between Leo and Gemini
Say it in a sentence
“Doctors caught the cancer early enough to treat it successfully.”“cancer”, answered
How do you pronounce “cancer”?
“cancer” is pronounced /ˈkænsɚ/ (KAN-suh) in American English and /kansə/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “can”. Build it as CAN-cer, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “cancer” have?
2: can · cer. The beat lands on the first, “can”.
Is “cancer” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈkænsɚ/ (KAN-suh); British English says /kansə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “cancer” mean?
As a noun: any malignant growth or tumor caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division; it may spread to other parts of the body through the lymphatic system or the blood stream For example: “Doctors caught the cancer early enough to treat it successfully.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “cancer”?
Stress the first syllable: CAN-cer. “can” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Now say “cancer” and see every sound
Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.